


And the Sky Fell Down

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-05-01
Updated: 2004-05-01
Packaged: 2019-05-30 21:42:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15105434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: Donna went to the Newseum too ...





	And the Sky Fell Down

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**And the Sky Fell Down**

**by:** Samantha

**Character(s):** Josh, Donna  
**Pairing(s):** Josh/Donna  
**Category(s):** Romance   
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Summary:** Donna went to the Newseum too ...  
**Spoiler:**  
**Author's Note:** I don’t know why I wrote it like this. Give me feedback on my writing though, please. 

Damn. We’re good. He was awesome. Toby’s brother is safe. And now the President is working the rope line. Yeah. Didn’t want him to do that.

What is Gina ...?

GUNSHOTS!

Things go crazy. Agents are shooting ... everything’s crazy. I hear scream. Sam shoves CJ down. He just saved her life. I’m shoved out of the way. I stumble a little and fall about 10 yards from where I was pushed. But I’m unhurt. I stay down. I cover m head. If I’m going down, I am going down like the wuss I am. I wish I had a gun. I would fire back on those little --. The gunshots end.

The President and his family ... and a few others are gone. They’re safe. I’m safe.

Where’s Donna?

"Donna!"

I’m searching for her. Maybe she got in with the President.

I hear Toby. "Donna. Donna? Donna!" He stands straight up. "I need a medic!"

CJ and Sam rush to Toby. I stand still for a minute, and then join them. Her red dress has some darker red spots on it. The ... they’re over her left lung. Toby’s hands are holding pressure above that spot. As the medics arrive, he stands and backs away, hands in front of him. He’s staring at blood. A lot of blood.

"Toby?"

He looks up at me. He’s ... Toby Ziegler is actually crying. CJ is too. Sam’s shoved his hands into his pockets and is looking down at the ground.

"I re-." My words are choked in my throat.

"Josh?" CJ puts her hand on my shoulder. "You’re okay?"

I rub my hand on the back of my neck as I look to the ground. "Yeah. Someone pu-." I stop. "Donna." I whisper.

Toby lays a hand over his heart, and the other on my shoulder. "We should get to GW."

I exhale. "Yeah." The words are barely coming out. Sam puts an arm around me. I stop and look at them. "She’s going to be okay, right?"

They all just look at me. Toby’s face particularly scares me. "We should just ... we should just get there. She needs us." His tone was solemn. He was choking back tears. He had been - he is like a father to her.

After most of the confusion dies down, we hail a cab from Rosslyn to GW hospital.

I take a deep breath as I step into the waiting room. I see Leo. No President. I run up to him. "Leo? What the hell happened?"

He looked down. "The President’s been shot." He looked up quickly. "But he’s fine! He just took one in the hand. He’ll be okay."

I look down and pause. Then I look back up at him. "And ---?"

"She’s prepping surgery. The doctor said he’d come back out when they were taking her in."

I think I’m going to cry. I manage to choke out a few words. "How ... bad?"

He looked up at Toby, who was once again looking down at his hands. Leo shook his head and looked back at me. "She lost a lot of blood, Josh. A whole lot."

"No!" I couldn’t handle that. Leo sounds upset; Toby’s not making wise-ass remarks.

The doctor comes out. "Folks ... you should go home. This process is going to take approximately 14 - 16 hours. She has a collapsed lung, and several broken ribs. If she makes it through --."

And the sky fell down. I cut him off. "IF?! You can’t be saying ..." I feel CJ’s hand on my shoulder as she sniffles.

The doctor continues. "If she makes it through, she may not wake up for days. Go back to your offices and your homes. Waiting here is going to get nothing accomplished."

I swallow and fall into a chair.

I’m not thinking about my assistant being shot. I am thinking about my Donna dying.

I look over as Toby slumps down into the seat next to me. He’s still staring at his hands.

"Toby ..."

"Josh. She wasn’t even conscious. She ... her eyes were ... they looked rolled back, Josh. It - it was not ... I don’t ..."

"Shh. It’s okay, Toby. You didn’t do anything wrong. Why don’t you go wash your hands?"

He looked at me. "Not until she opens her eyes and something dumb comes out of her mouth."

I stifled a bit of laughter. "She’s going to be okay, Toby. She’s - she’s - she’s got to be okay."

He tried to force a smile. "Yeah. We all know how bad you got when she left for that month."

I laughed a bit again. "Tch. Yeah. Things got pretty bad ..."

FLASHBACK - Manchester HQ.

March 30th.

I look at Toby. "Where the hell is the thing about the thing?"

He looks up from the paper he is holding. "Yes, so I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. But, that’s okay. Because I am your assistant." He pauses. "Oh, wait! No, I’m not! You keep making them quit ... ever since that girl left about a month ago."

I stare at him. "What girl?"

"You know. The blonde one. The one with the smile."

"Donna?" Was he talking about the one who left me for her freeloading, no good ex-boyfriend?

"Yeah. Her. The one with the note cards and stuff." He takes a sip of coffee and continues reading.

"She wasn’t even qualified." I scrunch my forehead and put my hands on my hips. Where the hell is the thing?

FLASHBACK - Manchester HQ

April 15th.

"Damnit, CJ!" I rush into my office and see blonde hair. There’s a blonde woman staring out my window. "Uh, excuse me? Can I help you?"

She turns. I swear to God, my jaw must have fallen to the floor.

"Hi." She speaks slowly. She stands. She’s in a skirt. It’s a nice skirt. She has nice legs.

"Hi." Smooth, Lyman. Way to show your Ivy-League education.

"Listen, Josh." She knows my name! "I just ... I don’t know." She was fumbling for words. "I was thinking ... and I wanted to know ... do you need an assistant? Again?"

"Do I know you?" I couldn’t think of anything to say.

"Wow. You really do have a small memory. I’m Donnatella Moss. I worked for you --."

"In February." I know who you are, woman. I am just ... I don’t know what I’m doing.

She nodded. She gently reached down and touched a bandaged ankle. "I just wanted to know ..."

I take off my ‘Bartlet for America’ ID and give it to her. "I have to get a new one made up for you." I go to the door and turn back to her. "Welcome back."

She smiles at me and makes my heart melt. I don’t know why I took her back ... she left me for Dr. Freeride. Yes. I think that is what I am going to call him.

PRESENT 

I don’t know how I got here, but I am in the observation room. They’re down there with her. Running frantically. I pound my hand against the glass. I don’t know why. I am gripping something in my hand. I look down. I have her ID. She asked me to hold it ... at the ... at Rosslyn. She was planning on going in to work on something.

I can’t watch anymore. I wipe a tear from my eye and walk back to CJ and Toby and Leo.

CJ takes me into her arms and I must cry myself to sleep.

Next thing I know, CJ is gently rubbing my shoulders and back. "Joshua. Wake up. The doctor’s here."

I open my eyes and wipe my tear-stained face. He has my attention.

He speaks. "I am here to speak about Miss ..." He looks at his clip board. "...Donnatella Moss."

We all perk up. CJ’s grip tightens around my hand.

He continues. "She did wonderfully. She’s in recovery now. After, we are going to let you all in. She’s going to look bad. She needs someone to sit with her."

They all look at me, but my eyes dart directly to Toby.

"You should see her first, Toby."

He shakes his head. "No, Josh. I think she needs to see you first."

I nod. "Maybe so."

The doctor walks away.

CJ breaks down. This is a side of her I have never seen. She simply collapses into Leo’s arms. They’re both ... well, she’s bawling. He’s trying to hold it back. He’s not very good at that.

I look to Toby. He’s looking down at his hands. He rubs them together. "Well," he says as he stands, "might as well wash them now." He walks away, into the men’s room. I hear him sniffle as he closes the door. He’s just a big old teddy bear.

We all decide to go home and shower and then come back.

At about 6pm, we all meet in the front. We go to the desk. She’s in a room. My heart jumps. She’s alive. But the nurse says she’s still unconscious.

CJ, Toby, Sam, Leo and I get into the elevator and go to the third floor. We find room 315. We walk in. My heart nearly stops in my chest.

She has tubes everywhere. IVs, monitors ... she looks ... amazing. I see her long blonde hair spread out across the pillows. She’s so pale.

I approach her. The others stand back. I reach out and run a hand across her forehead and over her hair. I sigh loudly. "My God," I whisper. "You are something else, Donnatella."

She’s not reacting. I look down and squeeze her hand. I turn back to the others.

Sam walks up to her and places a light kiss on her forehead. "Come on, kid. You’re only 24. What do ya say ya stick around for a while longer?" he whispers.

Nothing. She still just lays there.

He steps back and CJ, with tears streaming down her face, walks up to Donna’s figure. She grips her hand and kisses her forehead. "Come on now, Donna. We need you. I need you. You keep me sane ..." CJ covers her mouth and steps back.

Nothing again. Leo approaches. "I know you can hear us, Donna. I know you can. Just ... try to open your eyes. Tell us that you’re okay." He sheds a tear, and then looks to Toby, who has been leaning against the door, eye to the ceiling.

Toby sighs and removes his hands from his pockets. He steps closer. He pulls a chair with him. He sits down and grips her hand. He tries to sound intimidating. "Listen here, Donna. I do not have time to worry about you. You are supposed to be worrying about Josh. This is not like you. Stop hogging all the attention." He pauses. He looks back at us. He looks down at her hand. He smiles. He leans close to her face as he smiles more. He’s beaming.

His voice has tears in it. "She says, ‘Ow.’"

I nearly lose it. "She ... says ...?"

He smiles at me. I look to her. I’ll be damned if she doesn’t have the same smile on her face.

CJ breaks down. She runs to Donna’s side. "Oh my God, sweetie."

Donna slowly opens her mouth. "Hey." She speaks so weakly. "Is everyone else okay?"

I take a step forward. "Who the hell are you? Robert Kennedy?"

She smiles. "I was shot in Virginia on a pathway ... Robert was shot in California in a kitchen."

I smile and kiss her forehead. "Thank God you’re okay, Donna," I whisper in her ear. "Thank God."

I can feel her smile. I smile too. "Now, get out of bed. I need the paper for the thing."

"Like hell she’s moving!" I turn to the door. President and Dr. Bartlet are standing there. She has her arms crossed.

I chuckle nervously.

"Now, Josh. I know you can’t live without her, but you make have to for a while. I was talking with a few doctors and she is going to be in here for at least two weeks ... and then she will be home for about two months." Dr. Bartlet is direct with me. "Leo will get you a temp." She smiles as she looks around. "Which one of you got sleeping beauty to open her eyes?"

I look at Toby. "He did."

She smiles at him. "You’re a good man, Toby. And I know you were crying. But I won’t tell."

We all kind of laugh.

"Can I talk to the young lady for a moment?" The President starts making his way for her bed. We  all leave.

A few minutes later, President Bartlet walks out of the room. "Okay, folks. Go say your goodbyes. She needs her rest."

The others file in, I fall back and overhear: "She pushed Josh out of the way. The bullet in her was meant for him."

My eyes widen. I turn to the President. "For the love of God, Josh, go see her!"

I nod and do so.

That bullet was meant for me.


End file.
